“Every once in a while, you encounter a piece of material that you just cannot say no to,” former 24 star Kiefer Sutherland said on the heels of an announcement by FOX that the network had officially ordered 13 episodes of Touch – a new series by Heroes creator Tim Kring.

“Touch is another ambitious series from Tim Kring that is beautifully executed and has incredibly resonant themes for our times,” said Kevin Reilly, the network’s president of entertainment. “With Kiefer back on the network as the face and force behind this creative new series, I’m confident it will resonate with viewers this spring.”

Sutherland will play Martin Bohm, a widower and single father, haunted by an inability to connect to his mute 11-year-old son, Jake. After multiple failed attempts at keeping Jake in school, Martin is visited by a social worker sent to evaluate Jake’s well being. Everything changes when Martin discovers that Jake possesses the gift of staggering genius – the ability to see things that no one else can and the patterns that connect seemingly unrelated events.

Jake is indeed communicating – but it’s not with words, it’s with numbers. Martin meets Arthur Dewitt (played by Danny Glover), a professor and an expert on children who possess special gifts. It’s up to Martin to decipher the meaning.